This invention relates generally to golf clubs and, in particular, to a method of assembling a metal golf club head.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,465,221 to Schmidt discloses a method of making a metal golf club head having a main body and a sole plate. The main body of the club head has an opening formed in its bottom wall as a result of an investment casting process used in making the main body. A ledge circumscribes the opening for supporting the sole plate during a welding operation. A welded joint is formed in a gap between the main body and the sole plate in order to affix the sole plate to the main body. A drawback of the method disclosed in the Schmidt patent is that the ledge used to support the sole plate becomes distorted during the investment casting process and thus does not properly support the sole plate. Furthermore, this ledge is difficult, if not impossible, to straighten. Another drawback of providing a ledge to support the sole plate during the welding operation is that the bottom wall of the main body must be thicker than otherwise required. A further drawback of the prior method is that the sole plate is not fully secured to the ledge even though the sole plate rests on the ledge during the welding operation.